


Bewitched

by kiirosenpai



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M, Pro Volleyball Player Oikawa Tooru, Pro Volleyball Player Ushijima Wakatoshi, References to Friends (TV), References to anime, SemiShira - Freeform, because that is canon, iwaoi - Freeform, monster satori, tenushi, ushiten
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:40:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25525306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiirosenpai/pseuds/kiirosenpai
Summary: Ushijima Wakatoshi is a world-renowned athlete. He is practically a celebrity, thus receiving fanmade gifts that came in various forms isn’t new to him.So when he came home one night to find a large cardboard box on his porch, he didn’t find it odd.  When he peeked inside and saw a naked man, he didn’t find it odd at all.In any other circumstances, he would have thought it was merely a prank and would have immediately called the police to detain the offender. But the man inside the box had skin as pale as snow and hair as red as blood and two small horns jutting out of his head. He was enchanted, and Ushijima lost all his reason.
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime & Oikawa Tooru, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru, Semi Eita & Shirabu Kenjirou, Semi Eita/Shirabu Kenjirou, Tendou Satori & Ushijima Wakatoshi, Tendou Satori/Ushijima Wakatoshi
Comments: 64
Kudos: 221





	1. Hexed

Tendou Satori wasn’t fond of normal people. They irked him down to his core. They were utterly, painfully boring. And Tendou always thought it was a challenge to be nice to them. A challenge he very easily failed. _Every. Goddamn. Time._

“Oi, Tendou!” Semi kicked him awake. 

They were at a local bar, supposedly drinking until they dropped but his two friends - no, Tendou didn't really consider them friends. _Acquaintances_ was a more fitting term - wouldn’t let him _drop_ apparently.

“You can’t fall asleep here, we don’t know where you live,” said the grey-haired man. Tendou always wondered why Semi chose to dye his hair that way. What miserable event could have given him the idea that it would be cool to have the same hair color he would have 50 years from now? Tendou didn’t understand. But that made Semi interesting, or at least interesting enough for Tendou to hang out with after work.

“What’s this I heard about you making another student cry?” It was someone else’s turn to speak. Tendou had to squint his eyes to recognize the man opposite to him. _Ah, right. Shirabu._ Another person who was only interesting because of his hair. 

“Huh? It’s exactly as you heard duh,” Tendou answered, trying his best to not slur his words. The booze was running the course of his entire body, but it didn’t stop him from wondering who the hell cut Shirabu’s hair and what evil energy drove him through making sure the bangs would look symmetrically asymmetrical. 

“Stop being mean to the kids,” the guy said. Tendou almost rolled his eyes.

“They’re not kids!” he retorted, “They’re adults with so much free time in their hands that they actually have the luxury to enroll in an art class and attend it every freaking week!” He rubbed the sides of his head. Talking that much made him want to puke. He silently wondered if the two people in front of him would mind if he did the technicolor yawn.

“You’re just jealous because my class has more enrollees than yours,” said Semi, hitting the nail on the head. But of course, Tendou wasn’t one who acknowledged childish remarks - or so he liked to think.

The three of them were teachers in a vocational school that offered arts, cooking, and other unnecessary stuff people liked to indulge in and call it learning. Tendou handled the baking class, Semi the art class, and Shirabu was a med-student who part-timed as the- Tendou stared intently at his drink, trying to remember who the guy was. _Ah, that’s right, he handled the class that freakishly smart people attended. Gross._

In the few years that they’ve been colleagues, the other two have been used to Tendou showing up in their respective classes, totally uninvited - and unwanted at that point - to act as the second teacher. That was how much free time he had because apparently, people thought it was useless to pay for a baking class if it could be learned at home. Tendou had always wondered what kind of wretched monster planted that thought inside people’s heads.

“Stop taking your anger out on our students,” said Shirabu - who, ironically, was the youngest of them. _What a smartass_.

“But I'm not,” Tendou was just pissed at that point. "It's called constructive criticism Mr. Smarty Pants," he said.

“But nothing you say is _'constructive'_ at all.” These two just proved to be more and more uninteresting with each passing day, Tendou thought.

“But they’re trying so hard," reasoned the redhead, "And when you see talent-less people try so hard, don’t you just want to break their little hearts?"

Both guys' faces scrunched up, suddenly uncomfortable. Maybe even disgusted? Tendou mused.

“Well there it is,” muttered Semi.

“You know everyone calls you a monster behind your back, right?” 

“Bah, as if I care,” Tendou chugged down Shirabu's drink which had been sitting idle since they got there. 

The man snatched it back before he could finish the whole glass. “Care at least a little!" He shouted, "most of the dropouts this year were because of you, you know. You’re making people give up on their passion!”

Tendou stared them down. “If they were really passionate about it, would they give up that easily?" 

Utter silence.

Tendou smirked, "Passion is just a term you normal people associate with the things you like, just to give yourself a sense of superiority because you think you like something a little more than everyone else,” he said. “There's no such thing. It's all in your head."

“You,” Semi said through gritted teeth, “You keep referring to us as 'normal people' as if you're not! You're the only one giving yourself a sense of superiority!”

Before Tendou could answer, the door banged open, and a tall, well-built man stomped in. He had what looked like the softest ball of hair that swayed with his every move. Tendou thought he looked good, but only because he was fuming. He bet that man looked annoying on his good days.

“Tendou Satori!” The stranger suddenly screamed. Tendou failed to process that he was the one being called and wouldn’t have realized it if the stranger didn’t dramatically point an accusing finger at him.

“Huh?” was all that left Tendou’s mouth. It was all he really had time for before the stranger grabbed him by the collar and dragged him out of the bar. Semi and Shirabu were too stunned to move.

* * *

  
  


Everything swirled before Tendou’s eyes. He couldn’t make out anything except that it was dark, and that he was ready to throw up.

Cold cold cement suddenly met his back and jolted him awake. It took a while before the guy in front of him came into focus. He was still clutching on to Tendou’s shirt. 

“How dare you!” the stranger demanded, “How dare you do that to Iwa-chan!” he repeatedly shoved Tendou to the wall. It was cold and sharp, and it was starting to hurt. But Tendou wasn’t even sober enough to come up with anything. He had no idea who that man was, nor who this Iwachan was, and absolutely can't wrap his mind around the thought that a mother actually named her poor child Iwachan.

Unfortunately, the stranger took Tendou’s silence as a sign to keep harassing him. “He tried harder than anyone! He just wanted to draw to his heart’s content, and you tell him he “sucks ass?!” How dare you!”

 _Sucks ass_. For some reason, Tendou felt like that phrase had just also left his mouth that very same day. _But when was it, and to whom?_

“Painting is Iwa-chan’s passion! And you just casually walked up to him this morning and told him he shouldn’t even bother trying because he sucks ass anyway!”

_Ah, well that answered the question._

“You ruined his dream! Now he wouldn’t even lift a pen!” 

Tendou urged himself to say something. Anything. He racked his brain. He just had to say something that would calm the man down and maybe talk some sense into him once he'd stopped forcing Tendou to become one with the wall.

The memory of that guy Iwachan’s drawing popped up in his head.

“Well, it really did suck ass,” he said.

Tendou Satori was honest to a fault only when lying mattered most.

A punch landed square on his face, forcing him to his knees.

* * *

* * *

“Then he gave me a long-ass speech about passion and dreams, and how I wasn’t human because I lacked them and how he was going to make me pay by making me look like my true self,” Tendou said, talking as fast as he could, believing the man in front of him got every word anyway.

He was now standing in the middle of a luxurious room, wearing nothing but an oversized sports jacket which he woke up to find wrapped around him.

He was telling the entire story to the man seated on an unnecessarily spacious couch. The man who somehow managed to find him in a cardboard box outside his house, and didn't even call the police which Tendou thought was a little -just a very little- worrying. Tendou would have thanked whatever god looked after him that he managed to end up in an expensive suite if only the person who lived in it wasn’t someone as boring as Ushijima Wakatoshi.

The man didn’t even crack a smile the entire time Tendou was talking, no matter how amusing Tendou thought his story-telling skills were. _Not. One. Reaction._ His eyes merely raked through Tendou’s body over and over. And it made Tendou itch. He wanted to do everything to induce any sort of reaction from the man.

The staring was understandable though. Seeing as how a pair of horns had grown out of Tendou's head and for some reason his skin has become even paler than before, anyone would have stared. But normal people would have stared with a certain reaction - either amazement or fear if he would guess. But Ushijima stared blankly. It was hard to read him and Tendou was at the end of his wits trying to figure out what the man was thinking.

Endless blank stares aside, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary with Ushijima. He had normal hair, extravagantly normal bachelor’s pad, and a build that was for sure nowhere near the average but was still pretty normal for someone who played sports professionally. Ushijima Wakatoshi was probably the most normal person Tendou had laid eyes on - and it frustrated him that he had to ask for the man’s help.

“So,” Tendou started again, “That witch also told me that when I wake up, no one I know would remember me, even if I remember them,” he said, “So If I went back to my place right now and the landlord goes to check on me and they find someone they don’t know, it would cause all kinds of trouble and-”

“Sure,” it was the first time Ushijima spoke since Tendou woke up. There was something about Ushijima's voice that stunned him. “You can stay here until we solve the curse,” Ushijima said, “Did the witch mention how to break it?”

 _Straight to business, are we?_ Tendou thought how fitting it was that someone like Ushijima didn’t beat around the bush and tackled things head-on. He couldn’t help but grin. Maybe he’ll give him a chance to redeem his “normal” impression.

“Well, he did mention he will make me look like my true self and as you can see,” Tendou pointed to his horns, “He clearly meant I was a monster. So maybe I have to be more human or something?”

Ushijima was back to square one - staring. It made Tendou feel like he was speaking a foreign language. He groaned and tried to explain, “Have you seen beauty and the beast? The beast just had to do the opposite of what he did when he got the curse, right?” 

The silence that suddenly filled the room was almost suffocating. The two were staring at each other and Tendou was starting to question his intelligence when Ushijima suddenly got up and walked to his room. Tendou stood in place, dumbfounded. Even more so when the athlete came back with folded clothes and a towel.

“Go clean yourself up,” Ushijima said, “I’ll make you something to eat. We can start planning on how to break your curse once you’re well-rested.” There wasn’t even the slightest hint of warmth in his voice, but Tendou couldn’t help but think that it was probably uncharted territory for the guy. And if he poked hard enough, he might be able to break through the robot-like surface.

“Thanks, Wakatoshi-kun!” 

The athlete visibly flinched and Tendou grinned to himself. Surely enough, even having someone call him by his first name was new to Ushijima. That was the most reaction Tendou got from him, and he was more than satisfied.

  
  


* * *

* * *

  
  


Ushijima Wakatoshi wasn’t fond of normal people. He believed that people were like crops, and he was decidedly only interested in crops that were rare, and well cultivated.

Tendou Satori was probably the rarest crop there was. He had the meanest mouth -or at least to Ushijima’s standards having grown up in a strict household and all- but the most distinctive pair of lips. His hair was blood red against his pale white skin, which made him look enchanted. He had an animated way of speaking. His body swayed in every way as if he was always dancing to his own words. He always looked cheerful but his eyes never smiled. He looked at Ushijima like he had already passed judgment on him. And as if that wasn’t enough, he even found himself cursed by what was supposed to be a witch. There was no way Tendou Satori was an average guy. And Ushijima was more than willing to burden himself with the man’s problem if it meant he could witness his eccentricity longer.

Tendou was hexed. And so was he.

“Satori,” the name escaped Ushijima’s lips before he realized it.

Tendou almost dropped his spoon and Ushijima felt a tugging satisfaction inside him - like he had just won an argument he didn't know was there. “Can I ask you something?”

The redhead made a face and started swaying his spoon in front of Ushijima's face, “Just ask away. Do you know how nervous people get if you ask them that question?”

“You woke up with horns growing out of your head, buck naked in a stranger’s house, with the knowledge that people who know you won’t remember you anymore. But you don’t seem all that bothered about it,” said Ushijima matter of factly, “Are you really okay?”

Tendou chewed on his cheek, pondering. Ushijima’s eyes never left him, not letting a single movement go unnoticed.

“Well, this kind of thing has already happened in a lot of anime that I’ve watched you know,” answered Tendou.

Ushijima was caught off guard, that was far from what he expected to hear, “Anime?”

Tendou’s eyes lit up, “Yes!” 

Somewhere between finishing his food and what probably was the hundredth time Tendou said the word “shounen,” Ushijima had tuned out. The other guy’s mouth was still moving vehemently. Whoever said Tendou Satori wasn’t passionate about anything had clearly never been in the situation Ushijima found himself in.

* * *

* * *


	2. Charmed

* * *

_Everything will be fine._

Tendou said to himself as he stared at his reflection in the mirror.  
  


_Everything will be fine._

He stared at the patch of black skin on his abdomen that seemed to cover a bigger area every day.  
  


_Everything will be fine._

He ran his fingers over it, feeling the hot and rough area. Like molten magma.  
  


_Everything will be fine._

He leaned on the sink, clenching his fingers until his nails scarred his palms.  
  
Who was he kidding? _Nothing was fine. Nothing will be._

He was slowly turning into a real monster and nobody cared. Regardless if people remembered him or not, he doubted anyone would have cared even if they knew. After all, he didn't form any sort of lasting relationship with anyone. Maybe he really was a monster. Maybe he did deserve what was happening to him. Maybe -

There was a knock on the door. “Satori?” Ushijima called out.

Tendou grabbed his discarded shirt and hurriedly put it on. He slapped both of his cheeks, took a deep breath, and forced a smile to his face before turning to open the bathroom door. 

“Wakatoshi, you really took your time at the bookstore,” he complained. Stepping out, he took the plastic bag from the volleyball player's hand, his face lighting up after finding a Jump magazine inside.

“Because I had a hard time looking for that,” explained Ushijima, “the clerk said it was rarely in stock. He suggested trying the anime shop on the next block next time.” His eyes kept looking from inside the bathroom then back to Tendou as if he was looking for something. “I've been home for some time actually,” he said, “You took too long in the bathroom.”

"Ehhh, is Wakatoshi-kun concerned about how long I shit?" The redhead teased, looking at the man expectantly.

A minute passed.

Then two.

Ushijima’s face didn’t offer even the smallest smile.

Tendou kind of blamed himself for even expecting anything else other than that. He let himself plop on the couch, changing the subject when he said, "You know, I would've found this immediately if you brought me with you."

Ushijima moved to join him. Tendou had to note how natural it felt now after only a week of being together. He blamed the fact that he saw nobody else except _Robotoshi,_ of course, he would grow just a tiny bit comfortable.

"Not happening," Ushijima turned the television on and the opening song which had grown familiar to both of them played at once. "Not until you stop cursing at every character of this show," he said.

 _Oh right._ It wasn't just Ushijima he had to interact with, Tendou internally groaned. He had _that_ tv show.

"Every _stupid_ character," Tendou corrected.

"Which you think is everyone," Ushijima was quick to add - to which Tendou merely shrugged.

Ushijima had been gathering information about how to teach someone to be more human. And a certain Bokuto Koutaro who happened to be his teammate suggested watching FRIENDS.

"It made me who I am today!" Bokuto had reasoned. 

Ushijima didn't know much about the guy except that he was a strong opponent and an even stronger ally. But people did seem to like him despite how loud and all-over-the-place he was.

Tendou was already loud and all-over-the-place. So Ushijima just had to have faith in Rachel, Monica, Ross, Chandler, and Joey to work their magic to make people like the man.

The redhead, on the other hand, cursed whoever Bokuto was every single day. He swore to God he was going to have an internal hemorrhage if he had to sit through one more episode of the sitcom.

"I know a lot of anime with better characters than this!" He exclaimed.

"You haven't even reached half of the first season, Satori," Ushijima chided - or at least that's what Tendou guessed he was trying to go for.

Ushijima never raised his voice. Not when Tendou accidentally stepped on his phone, causing a crack on the screen, while dancing to the opening of his favorite anime. Not when Tendou urged him to share his futon because he didn’t like sleeping on the bed alone. Not when Tendou forced his manga and Jump magazines onto his face. Not for anything. 

Tendou knew there was no way a robot-like Ushijima could teach him how to be human. He groaned once more and he buried his face in his hands. He was done for, he thought to himself.

There was a light touch on one of his arms, gently urging him to uncover his face. He looked up to find Ushijima leaning in, cautiously peeking at him. 

Tendou almost jumped in surprise. _Too close.  
_

Stunned and embarrassed, he frantically scanned the room in search of anything to change the situation. _Anything._

He found the remote sitting idle on the coffee table. _Whoever had the remote had control of the tv_ , he remembered the athlete saying. He jumped up and grabbed it. Ushijima was quick to realize what was happening - but not quick enough. By the time he was on his feet, Tendou was already a few steps away from him. The hand that held the remote extended outward, while the other hand was stretched towards Ushijima, stopping him from coming closer. 

"You gotta be faster than that," Tendou jutted out his tongue.

Ushijima had grown to hate that phrase. Tendou had always had a way with words that didn't go well with normal people but Ushijima didn't mind at all, but hearing that phrase from him just did it. 

Tendou was once again caught off guard when Ushijima closed his eyes and took a deep breath as if calming himself. He almost burst out laughing when he realized what was happening: Ushijima Wakatoshi, no matter how collected he was most of the time, hated losing.

The man opened his eyes with newfound fire in them and the redhead wasn't sure he could still confidently keep up with his little stunt.

“Fine,” Ushijima started, “Let’s settle this with a deal.”

Tendou’s ears perked up. He never would have thought he would hear the athlete utter those words. 

If he wasn’t sure of it earlier, he was now: Ushijima Wakatoshi definitely had cracks all over his normality. And Tendou wanted to peep through every last one.

“Amuse me,” Tendou challenged.

Ushijima’s face remained impassive, but it was clear he meant business. “I will watch and finish an anime you want, as long as you watch and finish FRIENDS as well,” he said.

Forget peeping, Tendou wanted to force all of the cracks open.

He was pretty sure the last part of what Ushijima just said was important, but Tendou seemed to have lost his ability to hear when the word “anime” left the athlete's mouth.

He dashed towards their shared bedroom and came out with a laptop. His eyes were wild but focused as his fingers danced through the keyboard.

Ushijima almost immediately regretted his decision.

* * *

It had become some sort of tradition that the team would hang out for a while after practice. Their manager suggested it to quote - strengthen their bonds - unquote. Ushijima didn’t think of it as anything but he found himself skipping it lately. Or to be precise, since Tendou appeared.

“Ehhh,” the complaints started, “Why is Ushiwaka skipping practice again today?” said Atsumu. For some reason, he was on the floor tangled all over Hinata. Kageyama dashed over, pulling the two apart. Ushijima had long decided to stop trying to make sense of his teammates' antics.

“I didn’t skip practice,” Ushijima retorted, “It finished ten minutes ago.” 

“This is practice on how to stand each other!” Atsumu reasoned before crying out when Kageyama successfully pried Hinata off his hands. 

“I’m pretty sure it’s practice on how to stand Miya Atsumu,” Sakusa muttered, walking over to drag the setter to a corner.

“Did you get yourself a girlfriend, Ushijima-san?” Hoshiumi asked.

Ushijima was just about to answer him when the door burst open and a frantic Bokuto ran in, desperately holding on to a big cardboard box. “Guys! I saw this outside, why didn’t anyone tell me we had something like this!?” he demanded.

The box had a very artsy “ _put something you love”_ scribbled on it. Everyone knew that box - everyone but Bokuto apparently. It had been placed at the entrance of their team’s gym for the fans to leave their gifts. 

Atsumu was quick back to his feet. He made his way through the crowd of athletes, ready to tackle Hinata when Sakusa grabbed the back of his shirt, stopping him.

“Make way!” Kageyama screamed, running to the box while carrying Hinata on his hands. A thump echoed throughout the room when the setter dropped the human tangerine inside the box.

“Ohhh!” Bokuto’s eyes were shining when he realized what Kageyama just did. Hinata’s cheeks flushed red in slow realization, and Atsumu clicked his tongue.

“Me too!” Bokuto exclaimed, “I wanna do that too! Coach, coach! Can I take this box home?” he excitedly asked, only to be answered with a smack to the head.

“Take this back to where you took it from, you idiot!”  
  


Ushijima had long decided to stop trying to make sense of his teammates' antics - or at least that's what he forced himself to think.

After watching the commotion between Kageyama and Hinata - who were now both furiously blushing while arguing in a corner - he was reminded of how he found Tendou inside a similar cardboard box. He wondered if the redhead would fit in a different box.

  
  


* * *

_So no one told you life was gonna be this way~_

Tendou clapped his hand four times, not missing a beat, and went on to sing the rest of the song. The television’s sound boomed throughout the house and he was dancing around in the kitchen, wearing an apron Ushijima had almost forgotten he had. 

Only when he did a 360 turn did he see the athlete leaning against the wall, watching him. His eyes widened in surprise, but it didn’t stop him from moving to the beat.

Ushijima didn’t smile because of course, he didn’t. But his face visibly softened and Tendou was more than pleased.

Tendou sang along to the opening song of the sitcom he used to hate, prancing over to the athlete, a whisk filled with cookie dough in hand. Without thinking he took a bit of the mix from the whisk with his finger and extended it out to the man. He only realized what he was doing when Ushijima, without question, took the redhead’s finger in his mouth.

It was warm. Warm and wet and Tendou was frozen in place. 

“You’re baking?” the athlete asked as if what he did was the most normal thing in the world. As if Tendou's heart wasn't about to leap out of his chest.  
Not waiting for the redhead’s answer, he reached for something in his pocket. 

Before Tendou knew it, Ushijima was pulling up Tendou’s hair, tying it with a worn-out rubber band. He could feel the athlete's breath against his forehead, and he swore his heart was just about to give out. He had yet to recover from his shock but the man just kept coming.

“Your hair is always covering your face,” Ushijima explained.

“I like it that way,” reasoned Tendou.

“I like seeing your face,” Ushijima casually retorted, with what Tendou wanted to believe was the tiniest of all tiny smiles.

Tendou made a mental note to never let his hair touch his face again. He’d even shave it if Ushijima asked him to.

* * *

Ushijima hadn't seen a single episode of Friends, but he felt like he already knew all of the characters and their current concerns, because it was all Tendou talked about during dinner. They were in the middle of discussing whether or not Ross and Rachel really were on a break - with Tendou slowly losing the argument - when the redhead changed the subject by asking how Ushijima’s day went.

The athlete slowly stilled as he pondered.

Ushijima always answered that question seriously. He wouldn’t dismiss it with an easy “it was fine” or “just alright.” Instead, he would actually take his time and think of how to best summarize the events of his day for Tendou. And the redhead adored it. He didn’t really expect anything. It would probably be about volleyball and his rowdy teammates, like always - not that he minds - but he was happy to have an excuse to escape the “we were on a break” argument.

“I saw something straight out of a shoujo anime happen in real life,” Ushijima finally said, and Tendou almost choked on his drink.

“What-”

When they made the deal weeks ago, Tendou was thinking of making the athlete watch One Punch Man because of how similar he thought Saitama and Ushijima were. But at the last minute, he decided to poke fun at him and suggested a shoujo anime instead. 

Much to his surprise - no actually, it was really no surprise that Ushijima accepted it without question. 

He had been waiting for the athlete to come complaining to him, demanding for another anime to watch like Tendou did when he was just starting with Friends, but it never happened. Instead, he even heard Ushijima say one night that he liked watching it because of all the colors. _The freaking colors!_

But now this - relating anime to his real-life - this was a whole new level.

Tendou couldn’t help but laugh. “Where and how?” he asked.

“My teammates,” Ushijima answered in a daze. He was too busy burning into memory the sight of Tendou showing genuine positive emotions.

“Ah!” Tendou suddenly exclaimed, “I just remembered something."

Tendou’s mind was always quick to jump from one topic to another and it was a challenge to keep up - one which Ushijima very easily passed.

He snatched the athlete's phone from the other side of the table.

“A special edition of my Jump magazine is coming out in a few months. I’m setting up a reminder on your phone,” he said as his fingers danced over the screen. 

“Why?”

“So you can buy it!” Tendou said as if it was supposed to be obvious, “I want you to continue my devotion to anime and manga when I’m gone. It will serve as my legacy.”

“What?”

“You know, once I turn into an actual monster and die-”

“Satori” Ushijima cut him off, “I’m going to get mad,” his voice was cold as ice and Tendou could swear there was suddenly some kind of intense aura that enveloped the room.

He’d already realized it before, but it still surprised him when he’s reminded that Ushijima Wakatoshi wasn't at the very least a robot. He had all sorts of emotions he expressed in extremely interesting ways.

He felt the skin of his abdomen burn. He clenched his hands, hoping to suppress the pain. He _was_ going to turn into an actual monster and die.

And the most interesting thing to do while awaiting his death was probably to try and decipher the enigma that was Ushijima Wakatoshi.

Ushijima took his phone away and told Tendou that he was banned from talking like that again.

He was pretty sure Tendou was barely paying attention when he agreed and stood up to go, leaving the athlete alone on the table.

There was a new challenge in sight and Ushijima gladly took it on. He wanted to make Tendou wish he wouldn't die.

* * *

* * *


	3. Enchanted

The rain was pouring outside and it was getting cold, but Tendou thought it was the best time to eat his favorite chocolate-flavored ice cream - which Ushijima ran through the rain for.

Something was playing on the television that didn’t catch the two’s attention. Tendou sat on the floor with his ice cream and Ushijima was behind him sprawled over the couch, having just gotten out of the shower.

“Aren’t you cold?” he asked.

Tendou placed two fingers on the side of his head and turned to look Ushijima dead in the eyes. “Unagi,” he answered.

Ushijima understood the reference, but he wasn’t amused. 

“You’re Japanese,” said the athlete, “You know what Unagi means. Besides, you’re using it wrong”

“How do you know that when you haven’t even watched the show!” demanded Tendou.

Of course, Ushijima knew. There wasn't a day that Tendou did not talk about Friends. For all his whining at the beginning, he had surprisingly grown obsessed with it. And Ushijima, for all his efforts in making sure Tendou finished it, had come to dislike the show.

Tendou was just about to have a spoonful of ice cream when Ushijima leaned in from behind him and ate it. Tendou froze, dumbfounded. For what probably was the nth time that week, his heart was suddenly about to leap out of his chest. It didn't help when Ushijima muttered, “Gotta be faster than that,” into his ears.

Tendou was aware that Ushijima did something worthy of a reaction - using his own line against him, and in a good situation at that - But the redhead was still too busy processing what just happened.

Ushijima had been very… out of character lately. He cracked jokes, though he'd never smile so it was hard to guess that it was a joke. He's more touchy, he's expressions were softer no matter how stoic, and this. _This! Doing something like this out of nowhere, with complete disregard for my heart's health!_

"Satori?" Ushijima poked.

Crap. He had been quiet for too long. 

Tendou straightened and made a face at the athlete before scooting over to the far end, clutching his ice cream close to his chest. "A referee would have called for a foul, Wakatoshi," he complained.

He looked to the other side, facing the window, in hopes that the athlete wouldn't see how his cheeks burned.

He tried to focus on the scenery outside to stop the erratic beating of his stupid heart. It was still pouring, the view from the window was kind of blurry. Like a mosaic painting. A memory of a similar painting he saw in one of Semi's art classes flashed in his mind. 

Semi. Shirabu.

Tendou cursed himself. Why was he suddenly remembering them now? No, actually, why was he remembering them at all? It wasn't like they were important people in his life. As far as he was concerned, they were merely his colleagues whom he drank with, had sleepovers with, confided his stupidest concerns with, and made himself feel like he belonged somehow. Albeit being rather forced for the two. 

If he knew that that night was the last time he was going to see them, would he have said anything? No, he probably wouldn't. It just wasn't like him. But some part of him thought it would have been nice.

Ushijima had completely forgotten about everything else. At that moment, the only thing that mattered to him was the look on Tendou's face as he stared outside the window. He had never seen the man openly display his sadness before. Though he doubted Tendou knew it was showing. 

The faint taste of the chocolate ice cream had already been lost in Ushijima's mouth when Tendou moved again. He shook his head and without saying anything, stood up to leave. Ushijima sat up and grabbed the man's arm to stop him. 

"Satori, do you want to go outside?" He asked.

Tendou turned to look at him in surprise. The change of emotion was visible on his face as he very slowly realized what the athlete had just asked. "Wakatoshi-kun, are you dying?"

Ushijima rubbed his nape, suddenly embarrassed. Of course, Tendou would be shocked. He had kept him locked inside for months. Restricting him from going out until he learned proper human etiquette - Ushijima wasn't even sure what that was. But he always imagined Tendou as someone who would make satire comments even on little critters that he would see.

But after seeing him make that face - like he longed for something that could only be found outside, Ushijima could not keep him hidden any longer. He thought that if Tendou wanted to see the world, he would do everything in his power to make it possible.

But that was thinking way ahead. He first had to make sure Tendou could make the first ten steps outside the house without breaking anyone's spirit.

"Well, you shared your ice cream-"

"I didn't, you stole a bite"

"- and that was probably the nicest thing you've ever done," the athlete went on, "so I'm rewarding you," he said.

Tendou's eyes were shining.

"If you fail today, however, you're never going out again," Ushijima deadpanned.

The redhead offered a dramatic salute.

* * *

The longer Tendou lived with Ushijima, the more he realized how capable the man was in catching Tendou off guard and it was making him slowly lose his reason.

After deciding that Tendou's first trip to the outside world involved going to Ushijima's practice - because he thought his teammates were 'god-tier' in human interaction, they were now at the doorway, almost ready to leave when Ushijima suddenly started fixing Tendou's hair. It was the first time Tendou had his hair up and the man was helping him make sure every strand was in place and it would have been completely normal had he not been standing too close for comfort.

"Your horns," the athlete said, instantly pulling Tendou out of his thoughts, "they seem longer," he said.

He was aware. Just that morning, Tendou woke up writhing in pain as the molten spot on his skin grew bigger and bigger. He hurried to the bathroom and found that it already covered his entire torso and was on its way to his neck. Judging by the pace of its growth, Tendou guessed he probably had at least a few weeks before it would reach a spot he couldn't cover with clothes. 

He silently screamed, biting on his knuckles as he waited for the pain to subside. Hoping against hope that the athlete on the other side of the door wouldn't wake up. That was when he noticed his horns. He didn't even notice it before, but it was growing longer each day. A big lump formed in his throat. He was one shy step away from being an actual monster.

Tendou visibly flinched when Ushijima pointed it out, worried about what the athlete might think. Then worried about why he was worried about what Ushijima would think. Before he could get lost in his train of thought again, the athlete leaned in and asked, "Does it hurt?"

Tendou staggered backward in surprise, yet again. He shook his head. Ushijima took the fedora from the coat rack near them - because of course, he was someone who could totally sport a fedora - and placed it on Tendou's head. 

"That should do it," he said, "just let me know if it starts hurting."

Tendou almost wanted to laugh at himself for even worrying about what the man would think of him.

* * *

Ushijima had low expectations, but he was still surprised to find Tendou surpassing all of them. Although he was right about one thing: the redhead mocked every single living creature they came across. But he at least had the heart to make sure he wasn't heard and to fake being polite, so Ushijima thought it was all good. He wouldn't be deducting points yet.

The athlete rarely walked to practice. He either drove himself there or was fetched by the team manager. But since it was Tendou's first day outside after a long time, he had let the man decide.

Ushijima had already forgotten the last time he rode the public bus to anywhere. But Tendou seemed well familiar with it. He silently wondered if the man used to commute all the time in the past, vaguely realizing that he barely knew anything about Tendou's life.

The rain had stopped pouring hours ago but the puddles were everywhere and Ushijima was taking his time maneuvering through them and -

"Oh, you are such a baby!" Tendou laughed before pulling the athlete with him as he stepped on every single puddle.

_Tendou's first day out: minus ten points._

* * *

Ushijima had a lot of things he could say about his teammates on the court. He believed they were all well-cultivated crops from the best soils all over Japan. 

Off-court however, he wasn't very sure he could still say the same.

So when the entire team met Tendou for the first time, he wasn't sure what he was expecting. But it was definitely not Tendou and Bokuto immediately getting along.

"I have to thank you for a lot of things, Bokuto-san," Tendou was saying. Bokuto obviously had no idea what Tendou meant, but still looked very pleased with himself.

"I can't believe Ushijima is the first one to bring a friend over," Hoshiumi said as he walked over, bringing the rest of the team with him.

"Right? And it's someone we haven't seen before!" Hinata pointed out, "Ushijima-san how dare you hide him from us?"

"It must be tough, being friends with that robot," Atsumu said before placing an arm around Tendou's shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll save you from him," he was saying when all of a sudden he was being dragged by the collar.

"Tsumu, stop flirting with literally everything you see," Sakusa muttered.

"Actually, it's him who needs to be saved from me," Tendou retorted with a wink.

Atsumu grinned, "I like this guy already!"

It was Bokuto's turn to place a hand on his shoulder, "Me too! Let's make him our friend!" He exclaimed.

"I agree, let's take him away from Ushijima," Hoshiumi added.

Ushijima looked like he was just about to say something when the team's coach called out to them, asking them to gather around. A frown settled on Ushijima's face before going, making Tendou snicker.

It certainly felt nice that other people wanted to befriend him - and they were all interesting people at that. But Tendou pushed down all the pleasant feelings he had. Someone like him did not deserve all those things. So he pushed and pushed until none of the happiness lingered.

* * *

  
  


When Tendou first woke up in Ushijima's house, it was hard not to know that he was a professional volleyball player with all the pictures and stuff that was lying around. But he had no idea he was amazing. _Damn_. And he even looked amazing. _Double damn_.

Tendou was seated one the bench and saw everything. He had his fair share of volleyball back in high school so he knew what was going on. He knew Ushijima was being a damn good player. Everyone was. But his eyes were glued to the man. His form was beautiful. He didn't make any unnecessary movements and looked perfectly calm and focused the entire time. And when he jumped, he looked like he was frozen midair. _He was enchanted._

  
  
  
  
  


"Were you bored?" Ushijima asked when the practice game ended. He was chugging down his water, sweating all over and out of breath - he was perfect.

Tendou shook his head in response, "I even won 5,000 yen on the bets I made on your spikes," he said.

Ushijima looked around. There certainly wasn't anyone else who watched the game. "Whom did you make the bet with?" He couldn't help but ask.

"Myself"

"So you won 5,000 yen from… yourself?" 

"Yes! Crazy, right?" 

Ushijima chuckled. He chuckled and Tendou had to hold onto his seat to steady himself. The entire court seemed to have been silenced by the rare sound of Ushijima's laughter as well. But it wasn't just that for Tendou. It was the sight of Ushijima being happy that hit him. It was almost like a -

"Miracle," Tendou said under his breath.

Ushijima gave him a curious look, having not heard him.

Tendou made a dramatic pose, "miracle boy Wakatoshi!" He exclaimed.

Snickers filled the court, and Ushijima actually looked shy. _What was it about today's game that made the man suddenly expressive?_

The athlete joined him on the bench. "None of it was a miracle," he started. "I've been playing volleyball since I was little and I've been working hard for it since then. Even until now, I continuously work on becoming better"

Tendou had seen it before. He had even read about it in every manga he saw. Passion. It looked beautiful on people, especially on people who mattered to you. 

The image of an angry brown-haired witch screaming at him in a dark alley flashed in his head. _"You ruined his dream! Now he wouldn't even lift a pen!"_

Something hit Tendou in his gut, but before he could register what it was, he suddenly noticed the man who just entered the gym. He looked darn familiar. It was at the tip of Tendou's tongue but -

"Satori?" Ushijima called out.

He suddenly remembered. "Wakatoshi-kun, who’s that guy?” 

“Which one?” 

“That one, the one who looks like he would suck-ass at painting if he tried it” Ushijima still didn't get it but Tendou was pointing so he answered, “Iwaizumi. He’s our trainer.”

Iwaizumi. _Oh, so that’s why that bwitch called him Iwa-chan._ _Lame_.

“Do you know him?” the athlete asked.

Tendou's eyes were still glued to Iwaizumi, “Not really," he answered, "He just… caught my attention.”

Ushijima frowned, “We used to play against each other during high school. Their school wasn’t particularly strong. He was a decent player. But their setter - he should have come to Shiratorizawa”

 _Wow,_ that was probably the longest he heard Ushijima speak. Tendou finally looked at him again when -

“Oh- that’s him," Ushijima pointed to the man who followed Iwaizumi inside. "That's their setter," he said.

Tendou turned to look at the person that made the robot speak so much, and he choked on his heart.

“Oikawa Tooru," Ushijima went on, "He’s not on our team right now, he should have played for our team.”

_Wakatoshi, shut up for a moment._

Tendou was already stuck in his thought bubble when Ushijima had been called by his coach for a meeting. He asked Tendou to wait for just a little longer - to which the redhead merely nodded in a daze.

He watched as Iwaizumi said something to the setter, and the man dramatically clutched his heart in response, earning a smack to the head. They argued more, and finally, very reluctantly, the trainer sneaked a kiss on the setter’s lips before stomping off. The setter had a very satisfied grin on his face.

Oikawa suddenly turned to look exactly where Tendou was like he had known he was watching, “Ya-ho, monster-chan!”

Tendou was screaming internally.

“Now now, don’t make a lot of noise! My iwachan is having a very important meeting with his team. Or are you planning to ruin that as well as you did his passion?”

“You! How could you-”

“My my, what familiar words? I believe those are the words I uttered the first time we saw each other. How time flies! And Oh how the tables have turned!”

If this was a comic strip, Oikawa would have started his evil laugh by now. He didn’t do anything without theatrics and was also a man who, as Tendou realized, was way beyond interesting and annoying.

“It’s been so long!” Oikawa wrapped him in a hug.

Tendou couldn't move.

Oikawa gently lifted the fedora, until he could see the horns poking out. “You look like you’re doing well.” he smirked, “And let me guess, your oh-so-pretty skin has turned molten black arouuund” he smacked a hand on the redhead's abdomen “here!”

Tendou flinched. He wouldn't usually lose his composure over something like that but his insides seemed to have turned into a puddle. It was the man who turned his life upside down with just a snap of his finger - quite literally.

“So? What are you doing here?" Oikawa asked, "Did you come all this way to see me? Oh, I’m so touched! Are you ready to beg for my forgiveness? Are you ready to kiss Iwachan’s feet? Are you ready to-” he stopped halfway when he realized the redhead wasn't even paying attention to him anymore. He followed the other man's gaze and gasped.

Tendou didn't even realize he was staring at Ushijima who was on the far corner of the court. 

Oikawa laughed, “You’re here with Ushiwaka?”

Tendou glared at him as if in a warning. He couldn't let this man do some witchcraft on Ushijima.

“You weren’t even expecting to see me here, were you?” Oikawa went on, “Oh, how wonderful!” 

Tendou started gathering his things, deciding he'll wait for Ushijima at home.

“You instinctively looked at your source of comfort because you felt caged by me, and now you’re exposed!” 

The guy was truly a bwitch.

The setter grabbed onto his arm, not letting him escape.

“Well, I can’t let this reunion go to waste, can I? I’ll let you in on a little secret about your curse, I haven't told you yet how to break it right? And do you want to know what happens after you do?” Oikawa's eyes never left Ushijima and Tendou could feel his heart constrict. 

* * *

  
  
  


Ushijima questioned him about his relationship with Oikawa when he came back from the team meeting. He apparently saw the two talking with "Oikawa being all touchy," said the athlete.

Tendou joked about how he must have been scared that Oikawa would join Tendou's team and not his if he ever decided to play volleyball.

Ushijima stopped on his tracks. Tendou had always been smiling even if his eyes conveyed an entirely different message, but this time his eyes just looked dead. 

“Let’s buy something sweet on our way back," Ushijima said.

“Huh?”

“They will make you feel better,” he explained before placing a hand on the small of his back as if guiding him out of the court.

The rest of the team didn't let them go without causing a hubbub.

Tendou mused on what Oikawa had told him about Ushijima being his source of comfort. He wondered if that was true when the hand on his back seemed to have lifted the heaviness that Oikawa dropped on him.

* * *

* * *

Ever since his commute with Tendou, Ushijima found himself riding the bus for the smallest of reasons. He even started to like strolling around the place, which was what he was doing when he passed by a building that had been in a lot of Tendou's stories. The vocational school he used to work in. Recently, instead of Friends, Tendou had been talking nonstop about his past. Ushijima had no idea what caused the sudden change, but he was beyond grateful. He felt like he finally knew everything there is to know about Tendou and it made him feel nice and warm.

He made his way inside the building, finding pamphlets all over the information desk. Tendou mentioned he used to teach the baking class, so he took one baking pamphlet.

"Oh, are you planning to enroll in our baking class?" Someone asked.

Ushijima turned to see two men with very interesting hairstyles. The only other person he knew who could probably compete with their hair is Hoshiumi.

The two seemed shocked to see Ushijima there.

"Sorry, are you… Ushijima Wakatoshi?" 

The athlete nodded, then immediately changed the subject, "Who's handling the baking class?" He asked.

"Woah, it's really him. A few months ago it was Oikawa Tooru. Why do we keep seeing pros?" whispered the smaller one.

The other one pushed him away, "Sorry, please ignore him," he said, "Our baking class is actually not available anymore. I don't know why they haven't removed the pamphlets yet. We have other classes though. I teach art, and this guy is handling -"

"Do you know who used to handle the baking class?" Ushijima interjected. 

"This guy is really into baking isn't he," whispered the guy with weird bangs, receiving another glare from the grey-haired man.

"I don't think we've ever met him," the taller of the two answered.

"Semisemi, maybe we should take the pamphlets away ourselves"

Ushijima had heard that name before. In one of Tendou's stories.

"Your name is Semisemi?" The athlete asked.

The small man snickered while Semisemi's face burned. "I-It's a nickname given by a stupid friend," he answered.

_That's it._

"Do you remember this friend?"

"Wow these guys asking really weird questions"

"I…. I don't," answered Semisemi. He looked desperately confused. "That's weird, I couldn't possibly just forget about a friend. Especially one I let give me a nickname," he muttered.

Ushijima excused himself, thanked them for their time, and was not able to say no when they handed him more pamphlets for the other classes and asked him to reconsider. The athlete hurried home, although it might still be empty when he got back. Tendou had been hanging out with his teammates a lot lately. They got along, much to Ushijima's chagrin. Although their plans were usually no-Ushijima-allowed, the athlete didn't complain because Tendou always got back home with a smile on his face.

  
  
  


"So Bokuto was able to fit all fifty pocky sticks in his mouth!" Tendou was saying. As usual, he told him about his entire day over dinner. Ushijima preferred this over any other kind of talk. He wished it could go on forever.

"Satori, you seem to be doing well with making friends now," the athlete said.

"Oh? Is Wakatoshi-kun jealous?" Tendou teased.

_Yes but that is not the point right now._

Ushijima handed over the art class pamphlet. "Do you want to see your old friends?" He asked.

Tendou looked shocked, "Why would I do that?"

"Because they're your friends -"

"Well, not "friends" per se, but more like acquaintances"

"They called you friend, though"

"What?"

"He's still called Semisemi. You gave him that nickname, right?"

Tendou looked at the picture of Semi plastered on the pamphlet, as if putting it there helped garner more enrollees. _(It did.)_

"He said a friend gave him that nickname," Ushijima explained.

Tendou fiddled with the pamphlet over and over, suddenly anxious. Suddenly filled with foreign emotions he used to have no name for. What if. _What if._

Ushijima reached out to touch his hand, pulling him back to reality. "Relax," the athlete urged. "You don't have to decide right now. You have all the time in the world to think about it"

Tendou forced a smile to his face.

Oh, how we wish he did.

* * *


	4. Beguiled

Before Ushijima could open his eyes, he already felt Tendou's hair brushing his cheek.

  
  
  


On the night he found Tendou, he gave up ownership on his own bed and offered it to the man. The redhead had never used it though as he always joined Ushijima on the futon he had set up on the floor.

It surprised him when he woke up that next morning, with Tendou sleeping soundly on the opposite side of the mattress, leaving a safe distance between them. “I hate a big-ass bed like that,” was his reason. 

The two undeniably grew comfier around each other with each passing day, but at night, there was an invisible barrier that kept them on both ends of the futon, never daring to move closer.

Ushijima used to wonder what even the bed and futon were for. If they were going to sleep together anyway, they might as well use the spacious one, right? But satisfaction soon outgrew his curiosity. Satisfaction on the thought of Tendou still choosing to sleep beside him even with the whole bed being available. 

He let the subject slide and now he couldn’t care less about his bed which Tendou had surprisingly found a new purpose for - a book dump. All the volleyball books that Tendou considered to be “in the way” of all the manga he’d stacked up, found its way to the bed.

Ushijima might have recalled the redhead asking him if that was okay - only after he was already done doing it - but the athlete didn’t mind. He had no idea when or how, but when Ushijima realized how he would willingly say yes to anything that made Tendou bounce on his steps, he was already too deep in it.

Tendou groaned in his sleep as he scooted closer to the athlete, lightly clutching on his shirt.

It was the same mattress Ushijima had been using for months. But somehow, he had now grown obsessed with it. Just like how he had grown obsessed with his home, half running to it as soon as he's free. 

And the erratic dance his heart would do whenever Tendou's body slid against his with the sleeping face capable of deceiving anyone who didn’t know the man. With the position, they were in right now, no one would have thought the two used to sleep with what felt like meters of distance between them.

  
  
  


It was only a few nights ago when Tendou came home drunk.

Ushijima had been dozing off, the television left unnoticed, when the front door clicked open.

“Wakatoshiii~” Tendou sang as he staggered into the house, almost falling on his face.

Ushijima was instantly awake and at his side, assisting him to their room.

"You're late," The athlete muttered.

"And drunk!" Tendou slurred, grinning at his roommate.

"You said you'll be home by eleven and it's already two a.m."

"Did Wakatoshi-kun get lonely?"

"I got worried. Last time you were this drunk, you got yourself cursed"

The smile immediately left Tendou's face and he clicked his tongue.

Tendou had been going out with his old friends from the vocational school a lot since the day he decided to drop by the place and feign ignorance when he saw them. He pretended to be interested in joining the art class but mentioned that the instructor seemed a little too suspicious for his taste. The three almost immediately clicked and as Ushijima could recall on Tendou's many many stories about their past, the three of them are back to where they always were - drinking until they drop.

When Ushijima dropped the redhead on the bed, he crawled his way to the futon. Ushijima insisted on letting him rest on the bed instead but Tendou was already glued to the floor.

When the athlete tried to undress the man to get him into fresh clothes, Tendou tackled him and ended up in an awkward position, which the redhead was too drunk to notice.

The redhead fell asleep on top of Ushijima, his drool left a wet patch on the athlete's shirt the next morning - which Ushijima insisted was the reason why he couldn't sleep.

Since that night, even when he was sober, Tendou would still cuddle close to Ushijima. Neither of them saying a word about it, neither of them planning to stop.

  
  
  
  


Tendou slowly blinked awake and locked eyes with the athlete. Shock crossed his face for only a split second that if Ushijima even blinked, he would have missed it. A ribbon of blush crossed the redhead’s cheek before he pushed it down with a coy smile.

“Jeez, what kind of weirdo watches people sleep?” he teased, voice still hoarse with sleep.

Oh, how Ushijima had grown obsessed with his mornings.

* * *

  
  


“Don’t you have anywhere to go today?” asked Ushijima when he got out of the shower and found Tendou moving around the kitchen, the smell of chocolate filling the air.

Tendou didn’t even bother turning, “Are you pushing me away? We barely saw each other for like three days! Didn’t you miss me at all?” he teased.

Ushijima didn’t usually entertain his jokes and would always leave the conversation hanging. So when the smell of shampoo hit his nose as the athlete’s chin landed on his shoulder, Tendou froze.

“I did,” said Ushijima, his breath hot on the redhead’s neck.

“Toshi-” Tendou complained. 

Ushijima still wasn’t used to the new nickname Tendou had given him - _“miracle boy”_ grew old pretty fast - but he loved the way it rolled off the redhead’s tongue.

Tendou moved his shoulder in attempts to make the athlete get off him but to no avail. He then bumped his head against his. 

Ushijima whimpered and was gone in an instant. Tendou peered at him sideways, not wanting to look like he felt bad. But when he saw the athlete's face scrunched up in pain, he lost all pretense.

He dropped everything he had in his hand and almost jumped at Ushijima. “W-What-”

“I think your horn hit me,” the player mumbled, a hand on his head. He hurried to the cupboard where they kept the first aid kit.

He didn’t think it was possible but Tendou’s face grew paler. His eyes were wide in shock as he struggled to process what Ushijima had just said. The athlete knew exactly what was running through his head.

“It’s not your fault,” Ushijima firmly reassured while he did his head.

Tendou began trembling as he watched the athlete, tears threatening his eyes. “Toshi, I- I.."

“Satori, stop. It’s not your fault.” Ushijima wanted so badly to pull the redhead into his arms and whisper comforting words into his ear.

He had never seen Tendou lose composure like that, and it hurt that the first time was because of him.

The entire time, Tendou remained standing close to Ushijima, arms around himself and eyes still wide with shock. He was visibly shaking and Ushijima could almost hear the kind of thoughts he was having.

As soon as the athlete finished tending to his wounded head, he turned to face the redhead and placed his hands on either of his shoulders. That made Tendou look up at him, lips quivering as he said his name.

"I'm a monster," Tendou started.

Ushijima sighed, he opened his mouth to speak but Tendou kept going.

"I didn't even consider I could hurt you with this body. I really am a monster," the redhead went on and on. Ushijima had a feeling that if he wasn't holding on to him, his legs might have already given up with the way they shook.

"-and I hurt you. I can't believe I hurt you. Toshi, I'm a-"

But whatever he was drowned in his throat when Ushijima pulled him in, catching his lips with his.

It was a swift, chaste kiss. Clearly only meant to shut him up and the athlete pulled away almost immediately. Both had forgotten what they were talking about, eyes locked on each other, and out of breath and Ushijima leaned in for another kiss. This time it was slow and soft and for some reason, Tendou was holding his breath. 

The athlete pulled away just enough for their foreheads to touch.

Ushijima’s features had become unbelievably soft, and it felt like a punch straight to Tendou’s core. He had never seen that face from anyone before, but he knew what it meant.

“Satori, you can never hurt me. Because I lo-”

“Don’t!” Tendou screamed, cutting him off. He pushed the athlete away and took retreating steps. “Please, Toshi,” he mumbled. 

Ushijima took one hesitant step toward the man. “Satori, I just-”

“I don’t care!” regret flashed through the redhead’s face as soon as the words left his mouth. “I don't want to hear it," he said before turning to leave.

Ushijima had no idea a minor head injury could cause that much pain.

  
  


* * *

It’s been two weeks since then, and to say that Tendou had been avoiding Ushijima would be an understatement. The two hadn't exchanged a single word, are not willing to stay in the same room, and are acting like brats.

Or at least Tendou was. Ushijima on the other hand had been making sure the redhead still ate properly, leaving food out on the table - either home-cooked or delivered. He also started to sleep on the couch when he realized Tendou didn't want to share the futon with him and was about to sleep on the couch himself. Why neither of them considered the bed? Both had no idea. But the point was -

"That guy is a freakishly nice idiot!" Tendou shouted, surprising the other two men he was with.

Shirabu groaned, "this again?" He almost rolled his eyes - actually he did.

Tendou could clearly remember the day he wanted to roll his eyes at the man but stopped himself for the sake of professionalism.

"You know Tendou if you miss the man so much just talk to him already," said Semi.

The three were at Semi's house, killing time after Tendou forced them to accompany him. The redhead expected they would be drinking but the two apparently had a decent life other than liquor. Shirabu had his exams coming up, so he agreed to come only if Tendou would shut up and let him study. Semi didn't mind having the two in his house as long as he could paint.

Before Tendou could deny anything, Semi was quick to add, "Don't tell me you don't miss him, you've been talking about him for weeks," he said. Not even lifting his eyes from the painting he was working on.

"Complaining about him," Tendou corrected, "You would too if you lived with a man who's so nice it's almost creepy."

_Besides, why would he kiss me after I've just hurt him? Why would he look at me like that? Why would he say-_

The image of Ushijima looking at him like he was the most prized person on earth flashed through his mind. 

_"You can never hurt me,"_ Ushijima had said. _"Because I lo-"_

“Ahhh! You little careless shit!” Tendou screamed, flailing his feet around.

“Tendou, can you shut up for a while?" complained Semi.

Their friendship this time seemed to be way better than it was before the curse, but Tendou realized they still kind of sucked.

The redhead groaned, "What is it with you guys? I came here so you can cheer me up, you know"

Silence.

"Shirabu, you've been studying all week. I'm sure you've got it all memorized by now," Tendou went on, "and Semi, you're already one of the greatest artists I know, you can stop wasting your free time practicing already," he said.

Semi finally took his eyes off his work and looked at Tendou, his face turning beet red. That caught Tendou off guard. He didn't think seeing someone act all embarrassed could make him feel _that_ uncomfortable.

"What?"

"To say that I am one of the greatest artists you know is too much," Semi said shyly.

Tendou almost shivered. Really. Uncomfortable. 

"But thank you, Tendou!" The grey-haired boy beamed. "But I still want to keep practicing because I want to keep getting better," he said. "If I stop trying, then it will be like I've turned my back on it"

Tendou had seen those eyes before.

_"Even until now, I continuously work on becoming better"_ Ushijima had said then.

"Besides, it's fun!" Semi added.

"Right?" Shirabu agreed. "It's not like we're doing a chore. We're doing something we love doing, so it doesn't matter how much time we spend on it," he said.

Ah. That look. Passion for something. He'd seen it on everyone's faces when he watched Ushijima's practice game. He'd seen it on the man himself, countless times - even on things that had nothing to do with volleyball. He even found himself wearing the same look whenever he tried and succeeded at reading Ushijima. Whenever he sat through a bad film with him. He'd seen it a lot. He'd seen it on a couple of the students who used to attend the vocational school. And he had seen it get wiped off by his words. 

He really was a monster.

"I am so stupid," he muttered, bringing his legs closer to his chest. 

"Haa? We've only known you for a few weeks but we already know that," Semi said.

"No, actually we've known that five seconds after seeing you," added Shirabu.

"Oi, isn't that too much?" Tendou complained.

"What? Aren't we allowed to make fun of the guy who wears hats even indoors?"

"W-What are you talking about! This is f-fashion!"

"Ah, I bet that hat is really smelly now"

  
  


* * *

  
  


Ushijima was worried his brain might have turned into a broken record.

It played Tendou telling him that he doesn't want to hear what he had to say, again and again, and again and again and -

What was he going to say anyway?

That he loved him? - _did he?_

His chest tightened as he remembered how troubled Tendou looked after wounding him. How he repeatedly called himself a monster.

_Did he?_

He could suddenly feel Tendou's lips again - chapped and dry but still the softest against his.

_Did he?_

The image of Tendou looking pained as he begged him not to say it when it was already obvious what it was, felt like another stab to his head.

_Did he?_

Before he could think of anything else, the sound of the door clicking open stopped him. His eyes shifted to the clock: 21:45. Probably the earliest Tendou had come home all week.

Ushijima was already sprawled over the couch, ready to sleep.

When the redhead walked in, he stopped a few steps away. Their eyes- finally, after what felt like years - locked. 

"Can you walk to the room?" Ushijima asked.

"I'm not drunk," answered Tendou.

"I see"

"That's it?" Tendou sounded pissed, "Why is robottoshi back? After all the hard work I did!" He dramatically placed a hand on his temple, shaking his head. A voice inside his head told him that it was his fault. Ushijima was being careful and guarded around him again because of how he acted. Tendou wished the voice inside his head could suck his ass.

When Ushijima didn't so much as make a sound and kept his eyes glued to him, Tendou made small shy steps, stopping right in front of the couch.

He pulled on his hat, "I won't take it off so I can't wound you," he said. "So," he opened his arms. Keeping all the embarrassment he felt locked up somewhere.

Ushijima didn't move an inch - at least not for a second. Then he pulled Tendou down, letting the man fall on top of him.

Both men let out a sigh that they seemed to have been holding for two weeks. They stayed there, feeling each other's heartbeat against their chest. The only source of light came from the television that had been left unnoticed in the background.

“You were never a monster, Satori," Ushijima said.

"Toshi," Tendou started, "You're very passionate about something, right? So if I apologize to you, will everyone else forgive me?"

The pain in Tendou's voice almost choked Ushijima. He couldn't breathe and Tendou was trembling against him. His tears soaked the athlete's shirt. 

Ushijima could only run soothing circles on his back, as the redhead cried for the first time since he woke up to the curse.

Tendou bawled and wailed and repeatedly apologized until his voice cracked.

_He did. More than anything in his life_.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Ushijima woke up to the cold. He swatted his arms around in search of the blanket but only noticed that the space beside him was vacant. He opened his eyes, still groggy with sleep as he looked around.

He saw Tendou occupying the chair by the window. He had the blanket wrapped around him, up to his head.

He shifted a little when he heard the sheets rustle as Ushijima got up to go to him.

"Stop," the redhead said and Ushijima instantly froze in place.

"Toshi, I finally understand passion," Tendou said, "I finally understand why it's important. It's like a ray of sun that just lights up a person's life. I finally understand -"

"Satori?"

"I felt like I could finally treat people better," he went on, "as I could finally start making things right. But I guess, it was all for nothing. I guess I realized too late. I guess this is my real punishment"

Ushijima can't not move. He can't. Not when Tendou was saying things like that. Like something was ending.

"Toshi-"

The athlete took three big steps and snatched the blanket, exposing Tendou. 

Ushijima opened his mouth to speak, but his mind was blank. Nothing but the sight before him filled it.

Tendou's horns had curled, fully grown. The skin on his neck, down to his abdomen was charred black, like molten magma. And it stretched up to the corners of his jaw, threatening his face.

The changes had been happening very gradually. Ushijima didn't even know about a part of the redhead's skin turning black until now. But it was supposed to change slowly. _So what the hell happened?_ The athlete clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

"- I ran out of time," Tendou smiled and Ushijima wondered how such pain could exist without physical harm.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ushi: you can never hurt me satori bec ily  
> Ten: btch watch me  
> //  
> OH BTW HAPPY HAIKYUU DAY


	5. Enthralled

Five days. That was all the time Tendou needed to get back to his feet. Or at least that's what he hoped Ushijima would think. The athlete had stopped going to his practices and stayed by his side for five whole days, not letting him out of his sight. That resulted in Ushijima being able to see through him. Familiarity was an enemy.

Tendou was trying. He really was. He still baked, still smiled, still laughed at the smallest things but the way it all seemed forced didn't escape Ushijima. It was breaking his heart.

There was a pool of pain inside Tendou's eyes and it was drowning them both. 

Ushijima realized how stupid and selfish he had been. He once told himself that he would make Tendou so happy to the point that he wouldn't want to die anymore. He finally understood, however, that more than anyone in the world, it was Tendou himself who didn't wish to die.

The redhead had been housebound for the past five days. The full transformation of his horns made it impossible to hide them with a hat. Not to mention, the charring of his skin that stretched to the corners of his face which can't be covered with any kind of shirt.

His friends bombarded him with calls and messages every day. Even Ushijima's teammates had been trying to reach him. Tendou unknowingly touched lives, even more than he could ever know.

_"I finally understand,"_ Tendou had said that day. Whatever he was doing with Semi and Shirabu, it made him grow. It made the side of him that he had been pushing down all his life, come out. It made him more human. 

But he can't do anything with his newfound knowledge. He can only keep himself locked in Ushijima's house, waiting for his death to come.

Ushijima hated not knowing about anything. He hated how he had no idea how to break the curse. He hated how he didn't know what would happen when Tendou goes through a full transformation? Would he die? Would dying be painless in a world without Tendou in it?

Very few words had been exchanged between the two for the past five days. Everything they did, they did silently. They ate silently. They watched TV silently. They cuddled - oh how frequently they cuddled - silently.

Ushijima was leaning against the frame of the kitchen, watching as Tendou walked around aimlessly with a bowl in his hand.

Both of them had been lost in thought. Both had no idea what they were doing. It was only when Tendou accidentally dropped the bowl, causing a loud crash, that the two were pulled back to reality.

Ushijima was instantly beside the redhead, picking up the broken pieces. Tendou was staring at the floor, a half-smile on his face. 

"I'm so stupid," he chuckled, "I'm sorry Toshi. I'm just so stupid," he forced more laughter out of his body and the sound just made Ushijima's insides bleed. 

When the mess was all cleaned up, Tendou still had a smile on his face and it pushed Ushijima over the edge.

He walked to him and pulled him in a hug. 

"Stop it, Satori. Please," he begged. "Please stop trying to force yourself. Please stop trying to be happy when you're not. If you want to cry, cry. If you want to shout, shout. Just please, please stop lying."

Tendou didn't break away from the hug. The only movement he made was when he buried his face on the athlete's chest. "... a monster," he mumbled.

"This," Ushijima said before placing a soft kiss on Tendou's horn, causing the latter to flinch. 

"And this," he bent down to kiss his jaw where the charred skin ended.

"And this," he kissed his neck, the skin felt rough against his lips but he went on.

"And this," he kissed his collarbone before rising to look at him.

"They're all enchanting," said the athlete.

At that, Tendou broke down. The walls he forced to stay up, finally fell. He cried and cried and cried and Ushijima knew it wasn't enough. He kept the man in his grasp, placing soft kisses on his head. Tendou was bawling and the athlete mused at how comforting the honesty in it was.

"Can I say it now?" He asked when Tendou had calmed down enough to see him with clear eyes. An hour might have gone by or maybe just ten minutes but neither of them cared.

Tendou thought this was the perfect time to say fuck it. The person in front of him had become more important than life itself.

Tendou pulled him in for a quick kiss, "I love you," he whispered and Ushijima was beaming. He was beaming and Tendou had to silently wonder if he was allowed this kind of heaven.

"I love you, Satori."

Before Tendou’s mind could wander to far places, Ushijima closed the distance between them. 

When they finally kissed, everything went oddly quiet, like the moment of silence between lightning and thunder. 

He kissed him gently, carefully, but it wasn’t gentleness that Tendou wanted. Not now, not after all this time. He knotted his fists on the athlete’s shirt, pulling him harder against him and the next kiss was the kind that forced the sky open. It stole his breath and gave it back. It showed him that every other kiss he’d had in his life had been wrong.

Ushijima was everywhere up his back and over his arms and suddenly he’s kissing him harder, deeper, with a fervent need both have never known before. The redhead was sure their tongues had fallen madly in love and gotten married. 

Tendou grabbed on to the athlete’s hip and grated, feeling their hunger for each other through their clothes. Ushijima groaned softly, low in his throat, and then both of their shirts were discarded on the floor. 

The athlete took Tendou by the waist and lifted him onto the counter. Tendou wrapped his legs around him, kissing him on the lips. His hand found its way to the back of Ushijima’s neck - his skin was burning hot to touch. 

The athlete’s mouth skimmed Tendou’s throat and he felt a touch of tongue that caused his heart to bump harder against his ribs. He felt wonderful. Ushijima’s hands were everywhere, and it didn’t matter that his mouth was already on top of his, he wanted him closer, closer, closer.

He wanted to breathe him, lick him, eat him, drink him.

And Tendou did just that.

  
  
  
  


Ushijima was a kisser. Tendou had lost count of the number of soft kisses the athlete had planted all over his face while they snuggled on the futon, their bodies begging for some rest. 

He wondered how it was possible that Ushijima was amazing at everything he did. Recalling what happened made his cheeks burn. He suddenly felt insecure about himself, making Ushijima lick and suck on all the places that had been affected by the curse.

As if reading his mind, the athlete mumbled a barely audible "You're enchanting," before falling into the deep pits of sleep.

Tendou tried. He tried really hard not to cry. He begged his eyes to stop. He begged his heart to stop hurting so goddamn much. _Shit_. He really didn't want to go.

"Please don't fall asleep, Toshi," He whispered, "Please."

* * *

  
  


Ushijima had a weird dream. A man who looked like someone straight out of a fairy tale was crying at his side, begging him to wake up, telling him how much he loved him. The athlete had an itch on his throat, suddenly feeling the urge to say it back. That he loved him too.

He slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was the floor. He was on the floor. When had he ever slept on the floor? 

The next thing he noticed was that he was naked - and he never slept naked.

When he sat up it was as if a bomb went off inside his head. He almost screamed in pain. That was when images flooded him. Images of the man he saw in his dream. 

No - not a man. Tendou Satori.

Tendou Satori begged him not to sleep. Tendou Satori cried and cried.

Tendou Satori.

Tendou Satori.

Tendou Sato-

_Shit._

Ushijima hurried to the nightstand, grabbing a pen and paper. With trembling hands, he wrote " _Sa"_

_Sa_

_Sa_

_Goddammit._

He grabbed the closest robe he found and rushed outside of the house, barefoot. 

He had no idea what was happening, but that man -

That man -

He was losing him.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ten: fuck it  
> Also Ten: *gets fucked by Ushi instead*
> 
> //  
> I'm sorry for the short chapter. But this is how it's supposed to go （＞人＜；）


	6. Spellbound

* * *

Oikawa ran two laps around town for his morning run which he usually did with Iwaizumi who unfortunately felt under the weather that day. It was painfully boring. _Stupid Iwa-chan, getting himself sick._

He hoped some kind of entertainment would show up and-

And the gods must have heard his prayer, because Ushijima Wakatoshi suddenly entered his line of sight, frantically looking around. The athlete's eyes passed him but didn't show any sign of recognition. No, It wasn't that he didn't recognize him. But more like, he wasn't what he was searching for.

A smirk found its way to Oikawa’s face. With a hand on his hip, he walked over to where Ushijima was. "Well, well. If it isn't Tendou Satori's pet keeper."

Ushijima visibly flinched at the mention of Tendou's name. "What did you say?" He demanded, stepping closer.

The look on Ushijima's face made Oikawa instinctively retreat. "W-What?"

"That name. Say that name again." His voice was not loud, but forceful. The kind of voice that demanded compliance - if not outright fear. 

It took all of Oikawa's strength to keep his voice from breaking. "Tendou Satori," he repeated.

Ushijima's eyes showed all sorts of emotions in a matter of seconds and something clicked inside Oikawa's head.

"You… did you-"

"Where is he?" Ushijima cuts him off, "Tendou Satori. Where is he?"

"What do you mean? Ushiwaka-chan calm down-"

"I need to see him!" 

Oikawa had probably been watching Ushijima all his life. He had seen him on the court and off-court (much to his dismay). And he had never seen Ushijima break under any sort of force. Not under any sort of distress. Not even when he lost a game. A game which he supposedly loved with all his heart.

That was when the final piece eased itself into place. He had never seen Ushijima lose himself like that because the athlete had never loved _that_ much. Loved something more than volleyball. More than anything.

Realization struck Oikawa like a cold splash of water. "You broke the curse," he mumbled, "I can't believe you broke the curse."

"What?"

"You actually fell in love with that guy?" Oikawa doubled over as he laughed, "Oh God, you're incredible-"

Ushijima suddenly grabbed both his shoulders, stopping him. It wasn't the movement that surprised Oikawa, but the rawest form of pain he found on Ushijima's face. His chest tightened, guilt suddenly threatening to choke him and he forced it down. "He's gone,” He said, averting his eyes. “You broke the curse because you fell in love with him."

Ushijima almost lets go of him in surprise, "You're the witch?" He asked.

Oikawa rolled his eyes at this. "I'm the one who cursed him but you don't have to call me that."

Ushijima looked like his mind was struggling to catch up. He looked like he was forcing all the lines to come together and-

It did.

He looked at Oikawa.

"But I didn't fall in love with him last night! I fell in love with him a long time ago!"

That was when Oikawa noticed that the athlete had nothing on but a robe. He was quicker on the pick-up.

"When you started to realize your feelings, it quickened the pace of his transformation," he started.

_Ushijima vividly remembered the first time he heard Tendou apologize. The first time he saw Tendou cry. "Toshi, you're very passionate about something, right? So if I apologize to you, will everyone else forgive me?"_

"The very essence of the curse was love," Oikawa went on, "I cast that spell out of my love for someone. And the curse was so that if Tendou wasn't loved, he would slowly turn into a real monster. But if he was - the more he was loved, the faster he transformed. But if that love remains unspoken, it would only turn him into a monster faster. Because that's what unspoken feelings are - poison."

_The image of Tendou flashed through Ushijima's head. He was smiling painfully, eyes filled with regret when he said, "Toshi, I ran out of time."_

"But I'm guessing you didn't leave anything unspoken last night. It was then that you fully accepted and acknowledged how you felt. That was how you broke the curse."

“I-It killed him?”

"He's not dead. Breaking the curse meant he would go back to his normal life and he would remember everything, because how else would he learn his lesson?"

The way Ushijima’s eyes lit up almost broke Oikawa, "Everything?" the athlete asked expectantly.

Oikawa had to brace himself before answering, "Everything but the person who broke his curse." 

With that, Ushijima staggered and fell to his knees.

"That's the real punishment of the curse," Oikawa went on, "It's not turning ugly, nor growing horns. It's having someone love you for who you are, only to forget about their existence."

Ushijima clenched his fists through the dirt.

"Everyone who interacted with him during the duration of the curse will not remember him as well. So you shouldn't be remembering him right now."

No response. Oikawa gritted his teeth, frustration welling up in him.

"I told all of this to Tendou when I saw him at your practice! He knew about all of this so why didn't he tell you!?" _Why do I have to be the one to see all of this?_

_Ushijima remembered seeing Oikawa and Tendou talking during practice. He remembered how dead Tendou’s eyes were after that. Because he knew. He knew all of this would happen, that's why he told him not to confess. Because he didn't want Ushijima to acknowledge his love. Because he didn't want to forget about him._

_The sudden rush of images inside his head brought him to tears._

_"Can I say it now?" He remembered asking Tendou. He also remembered how Tendou answered with a kiss and an "I love you," and how he thought he was in heaven._

_In the end, Tendou chose to let his feelings reach the athlete. He chose to let the man know he loved him, over his happiness._

“Please,” Ushijima looked up, searching Oikawa’s eyes, “Please don't make me forget him. I beg you." 

Oikawa used to think seeing Ushijima miserable would cause him all sorts of satisfaction. He wanted to go back in time and beat the crap out of himself.

Oikawa bit his lips. He did all that. The pain that was etched on Ushijima's face. The pain that seemed to be killing him most excruciatingly. He caused it.

_What the hell would Iwaizumi say?_

  
  


"I can't," Oikawa finally said. "I don't… I don't have that kind of power. Once the curse is written, it can't be changed,"

Ushijima was on all fours, practically kissing the dirt. He didn’t make a sound, but his body trembled and trembled and Oikawa wished the earth would open up and swallow him whole.

“What’s happening?” someone asked in a hushed tone, pulling Oikawa out of his self-loathing. That was when he realized that a crowd had started gathering around them. 

Oikawa hurriedly grabbed Ushijima’s arm, forcing him up. “You idiot, what do you think people will say when they recognize you? Come on, let's get you home."

Ushijima had very little will, very little energy to even stay on his feet. Oikawa had to use all his strength to keep both of them steady. It was when they were finally making progress, with Oikawa somehow successfully convincing the crowd that it was nothing to gossip over, that Ushijima suddenly spoke.

“I can't,” he said. It was barely audible that if he wasn’t standing close, Oikawa was sure he would have missed it.

“What do you mean-”

“I can't remember his face anymore.”

Oikawa read somewhere that we are all villains in someone else's story and he had accepted that that's who he was in Ushijima's.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One. More. Chapter.  
> it's ending exactly one month after it was published because - ocpd (´。＿。｀)


	7. Bewitched

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Never make fun of someone's passion because that's the thing that saves them from this world."

Ushijima Wakatoshi wasn’t fond of normal people. He believed that people were like crops, and he was decidedly only interested in crops that were rare, and well cultivated. Because otherwise, the crop would be stale with dying colors, much like the world.

He made the last point needed to win the match. He heard the audience roar in celebration and his teammates gathered around him. The sound of the whistle going off, announcing the end of the game, pierced through his ear. He felt the rush of adrenaline leave his body - and nothing. His world remained the same colorless bubble that seemed to be booming with life that didn’t reach him. 

“Wakatoshi-kun,” Sakusa called out when they reached the changing room. Ushijima felt a little tinge in his chest but decided to ignore it. Sakusa had been calling him by his first name for a long time so he had no idea why it was suddenly bothering him. He turned to face the man, before realizing that it was just the two of them in the room.

“The others are being interviewed right now,” Sakusa explained. “I thought this is the best time to tell you while the others are away. Your plays lately, I-” Sakusa paused, considering his choice of words, “They suck.”

Ushjima expected nothing less from the guy. The amount of disappointment in Sakusa’s eyes could have made him feel bad. _Should have_ made him feel bad. But even the darkest colors were not present in his world and it was almost as if he had stopped feeling anything since the day he woke up to find his surroundings in dead colors.

He deadpanned an apology before making his way to change into casual clothes. Sakusa tried convincing him to at least stay for the ceremony but Ushijima managed to escape his collar-grabbing hands. He was just about to slither his way out of the gym, the unbelievable amount of people actually serving as an advantage, when he accidentally locked eyes with the person standing beside their Trainer like an overly attached boyfriend. _Oikawa Tooru._

Not even half a second had passed when Oikawa averted his eyes, a look of discomfort finding its way to his face. 

  
  


Ushijima could still remember a couple of weeks back, when he woke up to find himself on the couch, wearing nothing but a robe, and with Oikawa leaning against the kitchen counter, watching him.

“You’ve forgotten for real, right?” Oikawa asked him then. Ushijima had no idea what the setter was talking about. Heck, he had no idea what he was doing in his house. 

Ushijima might have looked utterly confused because Oikawa heaved a sigh of exasperation. 

"I just had to make sure," he said. Barely caring if Ushijima was listening. "My job's done. I'm taking my leave."

And before Ushijima could process any of that, Oikawa was gone.

He had been meaning to ask Oikawa about that day, but he never managed to get the guy alone, if not running away as the man very obviously wanted to avoid him.

And because he let himself get distracted in the middle of his escapade, a hand found itself crawling onto his shoulder.

"Ushijima!" Atsumu exclaimed, obviously still caught up in the hype of the finished match.

"You were amazing! I mean, you've done better, but still good enough!"

"Hey, Ushijima!" It was Bokuto this time. Ushijima half expected a headache to come with him. "I just rewatched season five of Friends last night and Akaashi was crying so hard on the last episode and-" he stopped to dramatically clutch on his chest.

Bokuto, for some reason, had been associating Friends with Ushijima, and he had no clue why. Ushijima was pretty sure he had never seen the sitcom before, however, a small part of him knew what Bokuto was talking about.

"Wait, what are you doing wearing casual clothes?" Bokuto asked in sudden realization, "You're leaving already?!" He sounded genuinely confused as if that wasn't something possible.

"I don't feel so good," Ushijima lied. 

A look of concern flashed through Bokuto's face, and it almost -almost- made Ushijima feel bad.

"Then, why don't you take some of the chocolates I have," Bokuto whispered, "It's the same chocolate we keep getting from the _love-box_ outside and it tastes really _really_ good-" 

"I'm leaving," Ushijima said before walking away, ignoring his friends' disapproval.

He saw the _love-box_ near the entrance of the gym. It was a big cardboard box with an artsy _'put something you love'_ written at the front. It was where fans of the team could freely leave anything they want the players to have. 

Food was usually automatically confiscated by the coach, due to safety reasons. Those safety reasons however never mattered to Bokuto who had been secretly enjoying handmade chocolates they've been receiving from a secret fan for weeks. The others, after hearing Bokuto go on all day about how good it tasted, chose to forget about the safety restrictions as well.

Ushijima was just wondering if the chocolates were worth it when a thought tickled his mind. Something about a cardboard box. A cardboard box. He couldn't quite pin it down but the way it poked the sleeping corners of his mind grew annoying fast so he ignored it and forced it down the drain.

  
  
  
  


Ushijima stopped for a moment when he finally managed to step out of the gym and into the warm heat of the sun. He merely stood there for a minute, waiting. Waiting until he felt something. Anything. The view looked beautiful despite being colorless. So he _should_ be feeling something beautiful as well. _Shouldn't he?_

The buzzing of his phone in his pocket pulled him out of his thoughts. He assumed it was one of his teammates or maybe even his coach and was about ready to switch it off when he took it out and saw a reminder instead.

**SHOUNEN JUMP MAGAZINE SPECIAL EDITION RELEASE TODAY! BUY IT OR I WILL RISE FROM MY GRAVE AND HAUNT YOU!**

Ushijima read the reminder over and over, hoping it would start to make sense. Not only that it didn't, but he also can't remember setting that reminder. He momentarily considered if it was a virus. That or his phone was haunted.

  
  
  
  


Ushijima was walking home. Why was he walking home? He hated walking home. And yet here he was, trudging through the empty streets without worry. He silently wondered if everyone in town was at the gym for the match. The place certainly valued volleyball like nowhere else.

It was almost eerie if he didn't hear the commotion going on from an open window of the building he just passed by. He stopped to look at it. If he remembered correctly, it was a vocational school. If he had to guess, classes were probably halted for the match too.

A man poked his head through the window, looking like he was about to throw something out when their eyes met. The man probably had grey-ish, blond-ish hair, Ushijima wasn't sure because his world just didn't welcome colors.

"Hey, isn't that-" the man started saying.

Ushijima quickly turned to walk away, hoping against hope that the stranger wouldn't suddenly shout his name. He was saved when someone seemed to have called the stranger's attention from inside the building. And Ushijima was back to walking freely around the streets. Watching the world go by in achromatic gloom. 

  
  


* * *

* * *

  
  
  


Tendou Satori wasn’t fond of normal people. They irked him down to his core. They were utterly, painfully boring. And Tendou always thought it was a challenge to be nice to them. A challenge he very easily failed. Every. Goddamn. Time.

But he was trying.

It had been two weeks since Tendou woke up back in his normal body, in his normal life. And it sucked so much it brought him _this_ close to dissing someone's boyfriend again. 

He was back to being a boring-ass baking teacher, with a sorry excuse of a wage. Back to being an ass-of-a-friend _friend_ to Semi and Shirabu - who unbelievably bought the story of him being bedridden for the five months, he was gone. Back to his painfully boring life.

Except this time, it had the faintest hints of color.

Tendou almost wanted to smack himself for even thinking of something so cheesy. He fought the grin that was forcing its way to his face.

"That number one is really off his game, don't you think?" Semi was saying. 

"Yeah, but they still won so it doesn't matter," answered Shirabu.

The two were watching the volleyball match that had just ended moments ago, through the live telecast. 

Tendou on the other hand was too busy baking cupcakes for the two ungrateful bastards to even get a glimpse of the match. And when he finally did, the only thing he caught on-screen was Bokuto and Atsumu's rowdy interview.

Tendou couldn't help but laugh. He clearly remembered watching that team in practice. He remembered hanging out with them, drinking like there was no tomorrow, making fun of each other like laughter could cure everything in the world. 

He'd always wanted to drop by and say hi to them but worried that they might find him weird, he settled with leaving handmade chocolates at their so-called _love-box_. (Tendou wondered if that would make a good name for a motel) 

He kind of knew that they probably won't eat the chocolates due to safety reasons. But then again, they were all idiots. Idiots and safety reasons never go together.

Tendou could feel his cheeks hurt from smiling. The feeling was so foreign and seemed to be filling him inside. And apparently, even Semi and Shirabu found it odd.

"You… you've changed lately. What is wrong with you?" Semi teased. 

"Hey, you two shut up. They're showing Oikawa," Shirabu interjected.

Tendou wanted to say he knew someone else who had the same fascination with Oikawa, but the thought was quick to leave his mind when he realized he _didn't_ know anyone else like that. 

He looked at the screen. The commentators were saying something about a big-time player coming to watch the game. Oikawa was shown to be shyly waving at the camera. _Ugh_. _Who would even like that guy?_

Tendou still had mixed feelings about the guy. He kind of went over the top to avenge his boyfriend's hurt pride. And sure, Tendou probably deserved it. Sure, he did become a better person all things considered. But it was just. so. hard. to like the man!

Tendou always felt an itch whenever he tried to remember the conversation he had with Oikawa at the gym, on the day of the practice game. He could only remember bits and pieces and none of it made sense. Then again, most of the things he remembered from the time of his curse did not make sense. 

Tendou couldn't help but feel like something was awfully wrong. He didn't trust the witch. He didn't trust the happiness he could easily feel each day. He didn't trust the positivity that now revolved in his life. It didn't feel fake, but it also didn't feel like something that would last. It didn't feel like it had a strong foundation. Instead, it felt like it would break under the smallest amount of pressure. It would break and deem his growth invalid. It scared him.

"Hey isn't that-" Semi was saying. Tendou was back in reality and the tv screen was now showing eye-rolling advertisements. 

"Semisemi look at this," Tendou called out. 

_'Only for today'_ the current ad said, before displaying the date in technicolor. Semi doubled over laughing, and Tendou would have laughed too but something else caught his attention. 

He screamed, jumping from his seat. "Is that today's date?!" He demanded.

Shirabu cautiously nodded his head, and Tendou was instantly at the door, carelessly putting his shoes on. 

"It's today!" He shouted before dashing through the door.

" _It's…_ today?"

  
  


* * *

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Ushijima didn't really like books unless they were volleyball related. He'd never been much of a reader. So what on earth was he doing inside a bookstore?

The athlete had never felt so out of place before. If there were other people around, they would have thought so too. But Ushijima let his feet guide him, and he found himself facing the 'manga/comic books' section of the shop.

There it was. The only reason for his sudden attachment to the shop: The Special Edition Shounen Jump Magazine. There was only one copy left and Ushijima didn't know why he felt relieved that there was nobody else inside the store, when he didn't even want the magazine that much. Heck, he'd never even read the magazine before. And if it wasn't for the ominous message on his phone, he never would've even turned his head to that section of the store.

His fingers were barely a few inches away from touching the magazine when somebody crashed onto him, pushing him out of the way.

Ushijima placed a hand over his arm. _Damn, that hurt._ He glared at the culprit who appeared out of nowhere and didn't even spare him a glance.

The man had hair that looked blood-red against his pale skin. He was heaving and out of breath as he grabbed the last copy of the magazine from the shelf.

"Gotta be faster than that," said the stranger, before turning to jut his tongue out at Ushijima.

That was when their eyes met and everything seemed to have gone silent. Everything seemed to have stopped moving. Everything else seemed to have lost its value.

Tendou thought it only happened in the cheesy flicks nobody liked watching. He thought it wasn't possible to have all your worries swept away by the existence of a single person. But there it was. 

Very slowly, Ushijima could see colors spreading all over. Very slowly, he could see something beautiful. Very slowly, he felt something beautiful.

Like a-

“Miracle,” the two uttered in unison.

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**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M JUST PROUD OF YOU FOR SITTING THROUGH THIS, DEAR READER. THANK YOU.


End file.
